As 2012 comes to a close, the AAA-CPA would like to wish its members, partners and other industry professionals a safe and happy holiday season. As we reflect on the past year for the industry, we would like to provide the readers of the AAA-CPA Weekly Update a look at the most accessed articles from the year. Our regular publication will resume Wednesday, Jan. 2, 2013.

AAA-CPA Southwestern Regional Education Conference — Reserve your place todayAAA-CPA Share From Jan. 25-27, the AAA-CPA will be in Austin, Texas, at the beautiful Barton Creek Resort & Spa. Space is limited, so don't miss out.
The AAA-CPA has secured a block of rooms at the Barton Creek Resort for the evenings of Friday, Jan. 25, and Saturday, Jan. 26. Rates are $205.65 for a single/double room, including resort fee. Reservations can be made by calling the Barton Creek Resort directly at 800-604-6563. Reservations must be made by Friday, Jan. 4, in order to guarantee our group rate. This rate will be available three days before and after the conference for those who wish to extend their travel. When making reservations, please mention that you are with the AAA-CPA.

Prison inmates register with the IRS as tax preparersUSA Today Share From Jan. 4, 2012: Hundreds of prison inmates have found new careers behind bars — by registering with the Internal Revenue Service as income tax preparers. A total of 331 inmates were serving prison terms when they got active or provisional tax preparer tax identification numbers from the IRS, according to an audit issued by the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration.More

The real middle class tax rate is minus 5 percentForbes Share From July 18, 2012: There are a number of ways that you can calculate tax rates: average, marginal, including only direct taxes, adding indirect taxes and so on. But the most complete method is to look at taxes paid and then net off against benefits received. This gives the true tax and benefit rate. At which point, the real middle class tax rate in the U.S. is minus 5 percent.More

With more blended families, estate planning gets uglyUSA Today Share From Jan. 7, 2012: The couple in their 50s pulled up to the estate lawyer's office in a snazzy sports car. She was dripping in jewelry and carrying a designer bag. He wore an expensive watch. They lived in a swanky part of town. The veneer of wealth vanished when they laid out their finances.More

Getting Business Owners to Create a Succession PlanRecent surveys indicate that most business owners do not have a succession plan. Learn how to motivate your business clients to engage in succession planning by attending this one-hour, complimentary Thought Leader Series webcast featuring estate planning expert Eric A. Manterfield, Esq. Brought to you by WealthCounsel. Register now.

Why US tax evaders can no longer count on Swiss secrecyTime Share From March 21, 2012: Switzerland's oldest private bank, Wegelin & Co., had survived three centuries of upheaval on the continent, including Napoleon Bonaparte's invasion of the country and two world wars. But its illustrious history was brought to an end by an unlikely source: a U.S. government desperate to track down tax evaders.More

Senate Democrats drop estate-tax plank from middle-class tax billThe Hill Share From July 25, 2012: Senate Democrats have decided to strip an estate-tax provision from their broad tax proposal to extend Bush-era tax rates for the middle class, a leadership aide said. The aide said the decision would ensure that all of the proposals in the Democrats' plan would help families making under $250,000 annually. "We think it's more appropriate to litigate the estate tax separately," the staffer said.More

Most Americans say rich should pay more taxes, according to new surveyThe Associated Press via CBS News Share From Sept. 5, 2012: As the income gap between rich and poor widens, a majority of Americans say the growing divide is bad for the country and believe that wealthy people are paying too little in taxes, according to a new survey. The poll released by the Pew Research Center points to a particular challenge for Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney, whose party's policies are viewed by a wide majority as favoring the rich over the middle class and poor.More

Charitable contributions of volunteers' unreimbursed expenses to animal welfare/rescue organizationsby E. Rhett Buck, attorney-CPA, Houston Share From Jan. 4, 2012: When Jan Van Dusen appeared before a U.S. Tax Court judge and a team of Internal Revenue Service lawyers, there was more at stake than her own tax deductions of $12,068 that she had spent taking care of 70 stray cats for the local animal rescue organization. Also hanging in the balance were the millions of dollars in annual tax deductions for charitable unreimbursed expenses that may be claimed by animal-rescue volunteers across the nation, as well as the treatment of volunteers' unreimbursed expenses for other IRS recognized charities.More

IRS says audit rates have grown for the wealthyThe Associated Press via The Boston Globe Share From Jan. 11, 2012: If you earn less than $200,000 a year, there's a strong chance you don't have to worry about an Internal Revenue Service audit. But if you make more than $1 million annually, the odds have been rising that you'll be hearing from the tax man.More

Pay almost no business or personal income tax legallyby Richard M. Colombik, J.D., CPA, Richard M. Colombik & Associates, PC, Itasca, Ill. Share From May 9, 2012: "'Of course, it must be too good to be true!' 'My accountant said it is illegal and will increase my audit risk and I may go to jail!' 'If it existed everyone would know about it!'" I have heard every variation of reasons not to fully realize the benefits available in the Internal Revenue Code. However, my 37 years of taxation experience allows me to understand that no one, not myself, not your CPA and not even your tax attorney, knows everything.More

Canceled credit card debts come back to haunt taxpayersUSA Today Share From March 7, 2012: Billions of dollars in credit card debt that was charged off during the Great Recession — some of it decades old — is coming back to haunt borrowers in the form of unexpected tax bills. Debt that is canceled or forgiven is considered taxable income, something many borrowers don't realize until they receive a 1099-C tax form from their lender. The Internal Revenue Service projects that creditors will send taxpayers 6.4 million 1099-Cs in 2012, up from 3.9 million in 2010.More